1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to electronic devices. More particularly, the present invention relates to improved user interfaces for electronic devices.
2. Description of Related Art
Progress in the electrical arts, has enabled increases in the functionality of consumer oriented electronic devices such as wireless telephones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), audio, and video equipment.
In the past, prior to the advent of digital electronics, analog devices were typically controlled using a plurality of multi position switches and potentiometer knobs. Such controls have the advantage that the state of the device can be ascertained by inspecting the positions of the controls. Users intuitively associate the state of each control (e.g., knob or switch position) with the underlying setting because they have learned the association by repetitively operating each control for a specific purpose.
Currently, the user interfaces of electronic devices are typically digital and include a plurality of momentary contact buttons that are used to navigate a hierarchical menu based user interface that is programmed into the device. In contrast to analog devices, the state of such digital devices cannot be ascertained by inspecting the state of the buttons because after actuation, such momentary contact buttons always return to the same state. Furthermore, users do not necessarily associate a given button with a given function, because the same button may be used for multiple purposes depending on the point within the hierarchical menu at which the button is pressed. Although, at any point in the process of navigating the hierarchical menu system, the state of the device is stored in memory and may be, to some extent, reflected on a display that is included in the user interface, it may not be apparent, particularly to a novice user, what keys must be pressed to complete a desired command. Entering a command to change the state of a digital device typically involves navigating through the hierarchical menu by pressing a sequence of keys. It is often difficult for a novice user to remember sequences of keystrokes required to enter commands.
As more and more functionality is added to electronic devices such as for example in the case of adding PDA functionality to a cellular telephone, it becomes increasingly difficult for users to master the user interfaces.